Transcendent Emotions - a Skyrim Adaptation
by GameFan 335
Summary: This is an alternate story of Skyrim, where the Dragonborn was forcibly shunted from Detroit, USA in the year 2006, to the universe of the Elder Scrolls. Diana is just an ordinary woman, who had never really found her true calling in life... until it found her. WARNING! Major fights, adult themes and coarse language. Under 15s please reconsider reading.
1. Prologue

TRANSCENDENT EMOTIONS

By GameFan 335

* * *

Summary: This is an alternate story of Skyrim, where the Dragonborn was forcibly shunted from Detroit, USA in the year 2006, to the universe of the Elder Scrolls. Diana is just an ordinary woman, who had never really found her true calling in life... until it found her. Thrown into a world she isn't familiar with, can she stop the conflict that has risen, long enough to stop a greater evil from destroying everything that everyone holds dear? Can she also find her dear friend that was lost? It remains to be seen...

Disclaimer: I do not own Skyrim. Nor the other Elder Scrolls titles. It all belongs to Bethesda Game Studios. The only things of this fan fiction that I own are my two original characters. No, they are not characters I made in my game.

Warnings: Moderate to high ratings for violence and adult themes. Should not be read by anyone younger than 15. Lemon rate zero. Spoilers for the X-Box and PC game Elder Scrolls V; Skyrim.

Character Descriptions: Diana; Age 23. Brown hair, tied in a plait that ends three centimetres below her shoulders. Caucasian, slightly pale-skinned. 163cm in height. Johnathan; Age 27. Golden/brown hair, long enough so that a few strands fall down his forehead naturally. Caucasian, reasonably tanned. 181cm in height. Fit muscle tone.

* * *

PROLOGUE

_Diana POV_

"Diana! Wait up!" someone called for me.

I'd recognise that voice anywhere. Johnathan... my knight in shining armour... And I don't say that just because he is the most handsome man I've ever met.

Even when we were children, he would defend me against anyone. He even helped me realise that the tragedy that took my parents' lives didn't signal the end of the world...

If it weren't for him, I don't know where I'd be. Certainly not in this city, successfully holding a job printing magazines. He was my faithful shadow. If he couldn't be by my side, he'd be on the opposite side of the street. In fact, he had a job across the road. We were like Edward and Bella, minus the vampirism.

I know, it sounds like an obsession, but he knows when enough is enough. If I want my space, I'll tell him, and vice versa.

"What's up?" I asked, "Aren't you supposed to be at work?"

"Didn't you hear?" he was shocked, "There's a blizzard coming! We have to go home, or else we may be stuck at work for the whole day! I'm not talking shift hours, I mean 24 hours! This storm is huge! It just appeared out of nowhere an hour ago."

"We'd better go..." I said, while chucked my empty take-out coffee cup into the bin, "Get in my car. You'll have to crash at my apartment."

"That's fine... I had to take the bus to get here." he sighed, "We'd better go now, if we want to make it before that blizzard kicks into high gear."

As if to prove his point, the snow started to come down a little harder.

Luckily for us, I was in the process of locking my car when he showed up. After driving out of the car park, I had to start competing with traffic, since the warning had been issued. We were second in line, so it wasn't long before we were in the suburbs.

But that was when things went wrong.

To avoid traffic, I went the roundabout way, which led me to the edge of the city. I was just about to make the turn-off into my suburb when a sudden gust of wind rocked my car and, try as I might, I couldn't get it back under control.

"HIT THE BRAKES!" Johnathan yelled as he saw a cliff ahead.

A cliff? There were no cliffs anywhere near the Detroit suburbs. How far off the road had I been blown?

I was given no time to ponder as the blizzard threatened to throw us off the cliff. All I could do was switch to reverse and hope the wind didn't pick up.

Then suddenly...

SMASH!

The wind had caused the rear window to shatter, and now we were being smothered by winds rivalled by cyclones.

"AAAAAAAAHHHHHH!"

Everything gave way... The car went dead from exposure and was thrown off the cliff...

X X X

_Johnathan POV_

As I regained consciousness, I was aware of the fact that I was completely alone...

The car had been blown away, and Diana with it, most likely.

My seatbelt had snapped, and I was catapulted out into a frozen wasteland. How I survived, I will never know... It certainly wasn't through lack of injury...

I didn't bother trying to call out for Diana. Even if she were next to me, she wouldn't have heard me.

In situations like this, there was only one thing to do, apart from keeping yourself warm. I had to move, and try to find shelter in a cave of some sort.

So I trudged through the snow, my footprints being filled almost immediately after I had taken the step. I was given no choice but to move with the wind. It was far too strong... My winter clothes weren't made for this beating, so they quickly lost their warmth.

If I didn't freeze to death, I would certainly starve within days... Or weeks, if I could somehow melt some water to drink.

But I was lost, and I couldn't help but think _'I'm going to die'_...

END OF CHAPTER

* * *

A/N: This is my first fan fiction, so please be nice. I realise that so far, it's a little weak, but I have not written much since school. That was two years ago. If anyone can come up with better names for my characters, I would gladly edit them. Remember, they have to be modern, not a name someone from Skyrim would have.

Love it or hate it, please review. Please read the next chapter before you flame me.


	2. Chapter One - This Foreign Land

CHAPTER ONE; THIS FOREIGN LAND

_Diana POV_

I woke on a cold, stone floor. As I inspected my surroundings, I noticed six gold objects facing a giant golden globe of some sort.

As I took a closer look, I found that four of the objects had one button each, but nothing happened when I pressed them. The tallest fixture had some slot on top of it, where you could possibly fit a squared object. The sixth fixture had nothing discerning about it, and it was almost completely buried in rubble.

I decided to take my search elsewhere and looked around a little more. I found some kind of metal trunk inside which I found some gold coins and an amethyst. I even found a dagger and some old-fashioned looking boots. They were lined with fur, and pretty warm, so I tried them on. They fit well enough, so I decided to keep them.

Then I heard a rumble from further within these ruins. I went behind the globe, where I found a door to a hallway that led underneath where I woke up.

It took an effort to open it, but when I went through that, and another door, I came to a room where I could see sunlight above. In this room was a single lever, set inside a circular indention on the floor.

As I heard a slam behind the door I just closed, I ran straight to the lever and pulled! I didn't care what it did! But, it turns out that pulling that mechanism saved my life. The indention on the floor was actually a lowered platform, and pulling the lever made it go up, towards the sunlight! As it started going up, I watched the door open, and something grey, emaciated and ghoulish ran in, seemingly intent on running me through with that blade in its hand!

But Fate had other ideas. The platform rose up, and stopped behind a set of golden bars. I pulled another lever set to pillar, and one side of the cage opened, giving me a way out. I decided to leave, before that thing found out how to follow me!

The blizzard from before had died down. How long was I out? Where the heck am I?

As I ran through the ice and snow (The new boots gave me extra traction! Yeah!) I couldn't help but think of what had become of Johnathan... Surely, he would have ended up in those ruins with me. Where had the car landed? I remember I was still in it when I blacked out. Was he thrown out as we fell? I didn't think I'd ever find out.

I soldiered on and, as it got darker, I found a cave to rest in. I got four hours of fitful sleep, but I kept going when the sun came back up. As I headed further north by my compass (It was built into my watch) I saw houses. Medieval-looking wooden houses.

It wasn't abandoned. I could see people walking around here and there.

It took me half a day to find my way down from my vantage point. By the time I got to the village, it was dusk.

"Hey, lady. Are you lost?" a man asked, looking up from his digging.

"Yes." I replied, "Where am I?"

"You're in Dawnstar, lass. Port of the Pale." another man spoke up, "Didn't you see the signposts further back?"

"I didn't follow the road." I explained, "As your friend established, I'm lost. Do any of you know the way to Detroit?"

"Detroit? Where's that? I've never heard of it." the second man was puzzled, "Is it some new city?"

"No. It's been around for ages." it was my turn to be confused. Wasn't Detroit world-renowned?

"Poor woman. You must have been shipwrecked…" the first man nodded knowingly, "Welcome to Skyrim. You must be from some other land, where Detroit exists."

Huh..? Some other land..? Did I really go back to a time where barely anyone knew what lay beyond their oceans?

I must be having a shock-induced hallucination!

"It's getting dark." the second man looked up, "Do you have any money, lass?"

I showed him my coins and notes.

"Foreign money. I've never seen it before." the second man said, "You'll need Septims to stay at an Inn here."

"I've got some spare." the first man handed me some gold coins, "This is enough for two nights. This town's Inn is over there." he pointed above a nearby hill.

"Thank you. Goodbye." I waved as I walked off.

I stayed at the Inn and asked where I could find some work. I certainly wasn't going anywhere.

"I hear tell of a job in Falkreath." the Innkeeper said, "They need some extra help at the Trader's. There's a carriage that's going there in a month. You'll need to pay fifty gold coins, though. If you don't have enough, you could work here for a while."

"I think I'll have to…"

I explained my plight, and he allowed me to work for him while I saved the money to hire the carriage. Luckily, I was given a free room as long as I worked and I was payed by the day. Apart from being sick with the Rattles, which ran its course, things went almost smoothly.

So, come one month (and a lot of adjusting) later, I had gold to spare. I even had enough to pay back the man who had spared some hard-earned gold for me.

I hired the carriage that was headed towards Falkreath.

X X X

SMASH! BANG!

It's been two days of scaling the countryside when we were jumped by bandits! The driver told me that bandits were a huge problem here in Skyrim.

Yes, I am well aware that I am no longer in the world I knew, unfortunately…

I considered making a run for it, but I knew that it would only end badly. I kept my hand on my dagger and held firm. Accomplices would have arrows trained on the carriage to stop wealthy passengers from getting away.

"I found someone!" a bandit shouted, reaching for me.

"Get away, dirt-bag!" I swiped my dagger at him.

"Ooh… Pretty and feisty! The boss is going to love you!" he sniggered.

I didn't like where this was going, so I took my chances and ran.

"Shoot her! Make sure that you get her in the legs!" the bandit yelled to people on the cliffs.

I ran, trying to avoiding the arrows for the most part. One still got me in my left shoulder.

"Ahh!"

I kept on running. I had to. My life depended on it.

I saw a wagon coming from a different road, with what looked like a soldier driving the horses.

"Help!" I shouted, "Bandits!"

"Get on!" the soldier ordered, stopping the horses.

"Wait, there was a carriage driver! We can't leave him!" I pleaded.

"He'd be dead by now. Trust me." the soldier said, "Now get on!"

There was a few wagons coming from behind. All of them had soldiers and people in ragged clothes. At the time, I had assumed that they were refugees from raided towns and villages.

I was wrong with a capital 'W'...

After lightly armoured soldiers had shot down the pursuing bandits, the wagons were driven back the way my carriage had come from.

"Where are we going?" I asked.

"To Helgan." the driver answered, "We have a prisoner that we must defend with our lives, if this abominable uprising is to end."

"Uprising..?" I put on my confused face.

"Where have you been? Hiding under a rock!?" he demanded, "Ulfric Stormcloak, Jarl of Eastmarch, decided that he should become High King of Skyrim and that this land should be ruled by Nords, as it once was.

"But not everyone sees it that way, so he gathered followers among his Nordic brethren. He knew that many people would object to his rule and try to kill him. Recently, he committed the most heinous crime imaginable...

"He killed our beloved High King Torygg! Yes, he was an Imperial puppet, but he ruled with a just but firm hand. Everyone respected him. But Ulfric Shouted at him. It tore the poor man apart, and then Ulfric finished him off. I'm sure Ulfric's followers were shocked by what he did, but they still backed him up. There was a Nord Legionnaire that allowed Ulfric to get away. Roggvir. He was put to death last week.

"But now, our luck has turned! We have a new General. General Tullius is an accomplished Imperial soldier who has seen his fair share of battles. Within two weeks, he has predicted where Ulfric would go, with help from the Thalmor. Yesterday, we captured Ulfric Stormcloak. He almost got away, but we stopped him. We have him and one of his commanders. We're taking them to Helgan now. Now we'll see how Ulfric pays for his arrogance."

"Wow..." I was gobsmacked. I had landed in the middle of a civil war! Maybe I'll see the end of it, or something that will escalate the violence. Only whatever Gods exist could tell.

We pulled into the fort town that I had passed only three hours ago. Helgan was a town of farmers, soldiers, blacksmiths and carpenters. Since the war started, it has apparently become a hub of military activity for the Imperial Legion. Messages passed through, shipments of goods were searched and all travellers were seen as suspicious until it was proven otherwise. I had to show them a letter of recommendation from the Dawnstar Innkeeper before they finally got off my back. Metaphorically speaking.

But they still watched me until my carriage had passed through the Falkreath entrance to the fort. What a bunch of tight-asses.

If I'd known what everyone had gone through, I wouldn't have thought that. I didn't know about the war until the soldier had told me. I had known that the land had fallen on hard times, but I hadn't seen enough of things to realise that there was a war.

"Alright, everyone off!" a soldier called out.

As everyone in ragged clothes was unloaded and their names were confirmed, I was taken to a healer to mend my shoulder. Then I was led to the office of a Legate of the army.

"Hello, citizen. I am Legate Rikke." she announced, sitting down on the opposite side of the desk, "Now, it has come to my attention that your hired carriage, destined for Falkreath, has been attacked by bandits and highwaymen."

"Yes, Ma'am." I spoke, "And I believe that the driver I paid has been killed... It was horrible..."

"I'm afraid they're that desperate for gold..." Rikke tutted, "Bandit activity has been on the rise since this war started last year. Even more so when things escalated two months ago..."

"I heard... The High King..." I was at a loss for words. I hardly believed what was rumoured to have happened to him. I mean, someone Shouted at him, and he was incapacitated long enough to be finished off? Now I've heard it all!

"May his soul rest in peace..." she prayed, "Now, I am prepared to give you a refund for the carriage, and an escort to Riverwood, where you can make your way to where-ever you choose. Unless you want to chance Falkreath again?"

"No. Those bandits are trouble..." I sighed, "I paid fifty gold to hire the carriage."

"Here you go."

She handed me a coin purse which was heavy to the touch.

"I can make my own way to Riverwood from here. I know where to go." I told her.

It was true. I had also bought a map from a shop in a town on the way here. It was quite detailed. The whole thing cost me at least twenty gold. And I didn't regret it one bit.

"Suit yourself." she shrugged, "As long as you don't tell anyone about who we brought here today."

"Fine by -"

KABOOM!

"What the..." Legate Rikke stiffened.

"DRAGON!" someone shouted from outside.

"Oh, shit!" Rikke immediately gathered her sword and shield.

"Does this happen often?" I asked, a bit shaken.

"No. This is a first for us." Rikke confessed, "But it is still dangerous. We have to move!"

We vacated the building we were in and headed towards a stone tower to the south of the fort. We were separated as we neared the place.

Inside I found several men in scaled armour with blue surcoats.

"Ulfric, what is that dragon doing here?" one man asked a fair haired behemoth of a man.

Ulfric Stormcloak looked as strong as they come. Even when bound, he exuded an aura of someone who couldn't be broken.

"I have no idea." he shook his head, "But legends have foretold that the return of the dragons signalled the end of the world as we know it. If I am correct, then that dragon we just saw was Alduin, the World Eater, in the flesh!"

There were anxious murmurs all around. Even the Imperials heeded the warning in his words.

"Could someone please tell me that legend?" I pleaded, "I'm an outlander. I don't know it."

"Very well." Ulfric gestured for few soldiers to keep watch, "But let's make this quick.

"Before the Second Era, dragons were rulers of the skies of Skyrim and beyond. Leading them was their terrible dictator, Alduin the World Eater, as he has come to be known. Along with his dragon brethren, he killed man and mer in droves. Humanity had given up hope and waited for the end.

"But then came our saviours! A Mage and two warriors worthy of the Companions. With the fabled Elder Scroll, they travelled to the Throat of the World and banished Alduin to the event horizon, never to return. Though they gave their lives to do so, they have saved us all."

I was in awe. Never had I heard such a legend.

"Alright. I think you've been filled in, now let's go!" Ulfric started for the stairs, "We have to get to high ground before we get buried in stone!"

It seemed the dragon had found us. The tower was shaking, as if caught in an earthquake.

"RUN!" someone panicked, making a run for it.

"No, you idiot!" a soldier shouted, trying to stop him.

It was too late. As he got to a landing up the stairs, the wall next to him seemed to implode, and vast jaws snapped shut around him.

Time to panic.

"AAAAHHHHH!"

Heaps of people bolted for the door then and there. I had more sense, and so did a few of the Stormcloaks. We waited until the dragon had moved on, satisfied that he'd trapped someone.

Then a blond haired man led the charge up the stairs.

"It's safe!" he shouted down to us. We followed him up.

"Alright, woman, do you see that building where the roof has burnt through?"

"Yes." I said, with a gulp.

"Good. I need you to jump." he pointed to the hole, "You can make it. Just remember to roll to minimise the risk of injury. It's going to get hot, but I'm sure it's nothing we can't handle."

Speak for yourself.

But I did it anyway. Surprisingly, I made it. My new natural diet must be working wonders! I've been losing fat little by little since I started working at the Inn in Dawnstar. I've had a real increase in stamina.

I ran down the stairs. As I got outside, I saw an Imperial soldier defending a boy and an old man.

"Still alive, huh?" he gestured to me to get behind him, "You can help me get the dragon's attention away from these two. They'll get away through there." he pointed to the gate across the way, "Let's go! Whatever you do, don't stop moving unless I say so!"

We ran, hell for leather, across almost the whole fort. I saw the dragon. It was big and black, and it looked quite like he was... glaring at me! Eventually, after several encounters with the dragon in which I got a new burn, we finally got to the keep. Then the Stormcloaks from before came to meet us.

"Ralof, you damn traitor!" the soldier cursed, "Out of our way!

"We need to get out of here! You're not stopping us this time!" the blonde man said, "You, girl, you should come with us." He directed the last sentence at me.

"Fine! I hope the dragon sends you all to Savngarde!" the soldier shouted, running for the keep.

I decided to follow him. I trusted him more, for some reason.

Inside the keep, we had a respite.

"My name is Hadvar." he said, "I'm just a low-ranked Quester at the moment. Who are you?"

"My name is Diana."

"Hmm. An outlandish name. Now then, let me see if there's some scout armour your size in here..." Hadvar started digging around some trunks set at the end of barrack cots, "Aha!"

He threw some leathery armour studded with steel in my direction. Luckily, it landed in front of me and not in my face.

"I think there are some spare swords over there." he pointed to a weapons rack in the corner.

"Why do I need these?" I asked, testing a sword with my right hand.

"To defend yourself in case the dragon breaks through, or in case we get attacked by something else if we escape." he explained, "We need to get word of this attack to Whiterun, even if it kills us. This is too important to let the information die. General Tullius will be reporting this to the Imperial Council and ask for advice, but he will not warn the Jarls yet. We must do that ourselves. And we must start with Jarl Balgruuf the Greater."

"Very well, but how do we get out of here?"

"I believe there are passages underneath this place that will get us out." Hadvar said, in a matter-of-fact tone.

"Then what are we waiting for?"

"A key. That door is locked." he was rifling through his bags as he spoke, "Ah, here it is."

We went further into the keep, finding evidence of the destruction outside. As we entered a room, I heard someone talking.

"Wait." Hadvar stopped me, "Stormcloaks. Maybe we can reason with them."

There were three of them. As we walked up to them to talk, they drew their weapons and just attacked!

"Imperial dogs!" one shouted, charging at me.

I soon saw why they were mad. One man in Stormcloak armour was dead at a table. Most likely tricked with poison in his mead.

I had no choice but to defend myself. The man that attacked me was the first person I killed by my own hand. The iron sword was the weapon that I first killed with.

"Not bad, for someone who hasn't trained." Hadvar approved, "You have potential as a great swordswoman."

"Not sure if I like that..." I said, uncertainedly.

We moved on and were walking down a hallway when suddenly...

RRRRROOOOOAAAAARRRRR!

I had to block my ears! But I still saw what happened as the roar died away.

The ceiling of the hallway had collapsed!

"Gods above..!" Hadvar gasped, "We'll have to go this way."

He opened the door to a storage room. As we walked in, I heard voices again.

"We have to leave! This tower's coming down!" one man said.

"Help me pack this stuff first." another countered, "There's a few potions that could help heaps of people I know. And we can never buy enough food for everyone."

"...True." the first man agreed.

"Hey!" Hadvar shouted, "Thieves!"

That triggered my second fight. There were only two this time. This time, one of them had an iron shield, which I took.

Before we moved on, Hadvar and I took a few things we needed (No judging. Those Stormcloaks were going to take everything!). We went down a flight of stairs and found...

Oh my God, it's a torture chamber!

We heard weapons clashing, so we sped up and found the jailer under attack by two Stormcloaks.

I knew that the Stormcloaks were the enemies, for now. Hadvar and I attacked them and saved the jailer. I regretted when I saw what was in the cages.

"Are you alright, woman?" the jailer asked, "You're as pale as a ghost."

His answer was given as I ran to the nearest bucket. Even throwing up barely eased my nausea at the sight of the wretched souls in the cages.

"Diana's new to this kind of life." Hadvar explained to the jailer, "She does look a little young..."

"It gets easier." the jailer soothed, rubbing my back.

Was that a pep talk? From a torturer?

"Never mind all this. A dragon is attacking!" Hadvar snapped back to reality, "We have to leave now!"

"I'm not going anywhere. I'm safe here. This place is underground." the jailer was quite complacent, "The ceiling is reinforced. No cave-ins here. My apprentice may want to go with you, to lead you out."

The man in question walked over and handed me a bundle of fabric.

"Unless you like that armour, you may want to change into these." he said, "What you're wearing underneath that armour will draw too much attention. Anyone can see that it is outlandish."

It was armour that didn't cover much of the arms, so I wore my long shirt underneath it, to keep the cold at bay and the air off my burns.

"Now's not the time for that." I said, putting the clothes in my bag, "Let's get moving."

"What is that accent?" he asked, "It's not Hammerfell, or the High Rocks."

"It's American." I answered, "I come a city called Detroit in America."

"Is that the capital?"

"Not of America, no." I was getting exasperated, "Enough. We have to keep quiet. There may be more Stormcloaks ahead."

Turns out I was right. As we came to a place deep underground, I spotted Stormcloaks across the bridge. Two of them attacked while another two held back and drew arrows from quivers on their backs.

"Serpentine maneuvers!" Hadvar ordered, instinctively, "We're going to have to avoid some arrows!"

Great. A maneuver I didn't even know. Guess I'd better try, though.

It didn't take long. While the other two were taking care of the two Stormcloaks that crossed the bridge, I crossed and took out the archers, hating myself for every moment of it. After doing so, I took a bow, a quiver and all their arrows.

We then proceeded to cross another bridge. As Hadvar and I crossed, the other man was crushed underneath yet another cave-in! It took out the bridge, as well.

"We won't be going back that way..." Hadvar stated, before saying a solemn prayer for the man who had been buried.

We had ended up in a cave. Nothing had been built here. There were only torches and evidence of building in progress, but other than that, there wasn't very much.

"Let's go." Hadvar led the way, lighting a torch with the nearby sconce. He handed me one, too.

We followed the torches down a shallow river for a while until the tunnel became too small. After that, we followed a side tunnel.

Eventually, we came to a cave filled with webs. I don't mean the little cobwebs that appear every so often in the average household, I mean huge spider webs that cover everything.

"Draw your sword, now." Hadvar whispered, "If we act quickly, we may get out alive."

Just as he finished his last statement, a gigantic spider (the size of a car!) landed silently behind him. To hell with stealth!

"Look out!" I shouted, stabbing wildly at the monstrous arachnid.

Before I knew it, the spider was dead on the ground. I had miraculously avoided being bitten and poisoned in the process.

"You truly amaze me, woman..." Hadvar said, in awe, "You don't seem capable of such sword skills, but what you just did is a feat worthy of battle-hardened warriors in all of Tamriel!"

"..." I was speechless. Tamriel..? Where have I heard that name before? A video game, perhaps?

"Many people can defeat a Frostbite Spider, but not as fast as you just did. And with an iron sword no less!" he elaborated.

I stuck the sword into the ground to clean off the gore. I was already starting to get over the smell of blood. The fact that it wasn't human blood helped.

We continued down an adjacent tunnel and came out in yet another cave. The little river was still running through here, so we still weren't too far from the fortress.

"Stop!" Hadvar held out his arm in front of me, "There's a bear up ahead. Do you see her?"

Indeed, I could. It was huge, with dark brown fur. I'm talking polar bear big. I could see it in the light coming from a crack in the roof of the cave.

"We could sneak around it, but we have to be silent." he whispered, crouching down, "If you're feeling lucky, shot it with your bow. Stay in the shadows, so it can't see you."

I lightly padded my way through the shadows to get closer to the bear, drawing my bow out of the holster on my back as quietly as I could. Then I notched an arrow and fired.

It hit its mark, almost clean through the torso. It must have pierced the bear's heart because it groaned once, and then was silent. When I was sure it was dead, I went to retrieve the arrow.

"You just couldn't resist, could you?" Hadvar chortled, grinning.

"Hey, I needed the practice." I retorted, "That was the first time I used a bow all my life. That kill-shot was pure luck. I probably couldn't do it again if I tried."

"If that's true, you've got quite the talent, lass." he considered, "Once all this mess is over, you should join the Legion. We could always use another sword arm or scout. If you have any doubts, I could vouch for you."

"I'll consider it." I said, truthfully. I couldn't exactly spend my days idling and managing some store or inn in a world like this.

For reasons I can't fathom, I've never felt so... alive..! I was weak-kneed at the sight of blood before today, but I killed two Stormcloaks, who are humans, a giant spider, and now a big grizzly bear!

I felt like I could breathe fire!

"That's the way out!" Hadvar pointed to a point of light coming from a tunnel past where the bear had made its territory.

As we walked out and thought everything was clear, I heard a strange sound in the wind.

"Get down!" Hadvar whispered, sharply, hiding behind a rock.

There was the dragon, flying away as if it hadn't just slaughtered a town's worth of people. It flew towards the north-west, and then was out of sight.

"It's gone..." I sighed, straightening up.

"By the Nine... It's headed towards Riverwood!" Hadvar was as pale as a ghost, "Come on!"

He broke off in a run, sprinting down the beaten dirt path.

Of course I followed. At the time, I thought he may have needed help. We ran or power-walked all the whole way down the sloping and winding path. I didn't know the way around yet, so I didn't risk any shortcuts.

As we came closer to Riverwood, I could almost touch the relief that Hadvar radiated. The little riverside village hadn't been touched.

"Uncle Alvor!" he called to a man, who was simular in looks to him, except that Alvor had a semi-bushy beard and was middle aged, while Hadvar looked almost my age, if not a few years older.

"Hadvar! How are…" he began, then noticed our current condition, "Shor's bones, boy! What happened to you? And who is she?" he gestured to me.

"Quiet down!" Hadvar hushed him, then said in a quiet whisper, "She's a friend, I wouldn't have survived without her. We have to go inside. I'll tell you everything."

"Very well. Your aunt will get you something to eat and some salve for your burns."

Alvor directed us to the house beside the blacksmiths' forge where he'd been working. I wearily sat down on a chair near the hearth while I listened to Hadvar explain what happened.

They had captured Ulfric Stormcloak with the help of General Tullius and agents of the Thalmor, an elite group of High Elves with superiority complexes. Not that the Legion would admit they thought that.

Apparently, because of the Great War and the White-Gold Concordat, the Aldmeri Dominion – which is what the Thalmor are a faction of – now rules whatever the Empire rules. And the Aldmeri Dominion said that the Nords of Skyrim had to stop believing in a Divine named Talos, a man who ascended to Divinity after a life of heroism.

Naturally, a lot of Nords were dead-set against this new law, and still worshipped Talos in secret… Until the heroic Ulfric Stormcloak was arrested in Markarth, a sprawling Dwarven-made city on the wester tip of Skyrim. The Jarl was given an ultimatum. Arrest his friend and his platoon of soldiers, who were caught at a Shrine of Talos, or trigger a second Great War. The Thalmor gave him no chance to think of the latter option, and so Ulfric stewed in prison and became an angry man. When he was finally released, he rallied people sympathetic to his cause of driving the Thalmor out of Skyrim, and became the leader of the Stormcloaks.

He had eluded capture, even after Shouting at High King Torygg and then sliced him apart, until two days ago, and was carted to Helgan for execution. The war should have ended then and there.

But the dragon had attacked! At this point in the account, Alvor interrupted saying, "A dragon? You haven't been drinking, have you, boy? Dragons haven't been seen since the First Era, and that was thousands of years ago."

Hadvar had pleaded that he was telling the truth, then continued.

The attack didn't seem to be coincidental, since the war was about to end, finally bringing Skyrim into a semblance of peace again.

As I was listening, I couldn't help but remember how that dragon had glared at me with pure hatred. If there had been no-one else around, and its attention were solely focused on me, I wouldn't have lasted a second. The thought made me shiver, despite the fire in close proximity. I hugged my arms around my torso and then remembered the burns, since they flared at my touch.

"Here, put this on your burns." a woman handed me a jar of opaque cream, "That'll soothe the pain and cool your skin. I'll get some bandages."

"Thank you." I said, gratefully, daubing the cream wherever I saw a burn. They didn't look as bad as they felt. But then, I had to remember that my blood was boiling underneath.

I decided to stay here for a day, to give my burns a chance to heal a bit, and then go to Whiterun to speak with Jarl Balgruuf. If I saw the dragon again, I would go straight there, as fast as I can, to warn them.

But, for some reason, I felt that it would be some time before I saw that dragon again…

END OF CHAPTER

* * *

A/N: OK, I edited this on Monday 4th November 2013.

To the kind soul following this story, and the people that made it their favourite, I formally apologise. I won't be able to continue this story, since I started Uni a week after I promised to regularly update this fanfiction.

I'm still partway into chapter two, and not going anywhere fast, so I am going to freeze this fanfiction where it is and I will write more when I have the time, which will mostly be during the Christmas holidays next month.

I have also realised that I don't leave cliffhangers at the end of chapters to make readers want more. Hopefull I'll get better at that and it will change in the next chapter.

Please be patient. I will be able to write regularly sooner or later.


End file.
